


Wish You Were Here

by scornfullearner



Series: Under the Covers [7]
Category: Game Grumps, TWRP | Tupper Ware Remix Party (Band)
Genre: Emetophobia, Food Poisoning, POV Dan Avidan, POV Original Character, Sickfic, Vomit, don't judge me it helps with my own phobia, emetophilia maybe?, lots of vomit description, no smut this time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-27
Updated: 2017-09-20
Packaged: 2018-11-19 21:15:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11321898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scornfullearner/pseuds/scornfullearner
Summary: Danny comes down with a rough case of food poisoning. Lexi faces her emetophobia head on and takes care of him.POV switches back and forth between both characters. It was the only way I could get all of what I wanted to write out.





	1. 1

I was sitting sideways at the table in our tour bus, knees to my chest, back against the wall, trying to let myself doze off when Lexi sat down across from me. I pretended not to notice, hoping she’d think I was sleeping. 

“Danny, baby, you can’t sleep there. You can try, but you can’t. Grasshopper legs.” 

I groaned. She was right. But The pressure of my knees against me seemed to help my unsettled stomach feel less jostled by the bumps in the road. I was afraid to move. 

“Or you can stay there. But don’t whine about it later, you stubborn thing.”

“I won’t.” Breathing out those two words felt like a workout. I didn’t want to speak. I didn’t want to breathe. I just wanted to disappear until I felt human again. 

Settling my chin on my knees, I look at my girlfriend. Her dirty blonde hair lay in loose waves around her face and over her shoulders. She was wearing my favorite Rush t-shirt and it looked fucking good on her. She stared back at me with concern in her eyes. 

“Danny? You okay?” 

“M’just tired.” That was definitely true. We’d been on tour for three weeks almost non-step. Lexi decided to tag along with us the week before when we made it back to L.A. for a few days. But I didn’t want to let her know the extent of how awful I was feeling. 

Lexi had bouts of emetophobia and I did not want to trigger any panic attacks while we were away from home. Or at all, but I knew that she already struggled being in new places. Hell, it really could have been a lack of sleep making me feel off. I may not even be sick. 

“The boys want to sleep in real beds tonight.” 

Relief washed over me. I sent a silent “thank you” to my buddies from TWRP. A bed that wasn’t on wheels sounded fantastic. “Awesome. When do we stop?” 

 

Lexi  
Danny crashed in a bed as soon as we checked into a hotel in Philly. I knew he wasn’t feeling well. He was so susceptible to illness. It was probably due to working himself into a weakened immune system. I had grown used to dosing him up with NyQuil and letting him sleep it off. He locked himself in our room without even so much as a hug, though. Something was definitely off his behavior, but I chalked it up to exhaustion. 

I found Brian and spent the day helping him set up the stage for TWRP’s show that night. We cranked up the radio and set up the stage with amps and instruments. Before we knew it, five o’clock had rolled around. Everyone got ready for sound check then broke for dinner. 

“You want anything to eat?” I asked Danny in a text. 

“Thanks, but no. Go out. Have fun. I love you.” 

I sighed. He was more distant than usual this time. He usually wanted to avoid me to keep me from getting sick, but at the same time spammed me with “I wish you could take care of me” messages. 

“How’s Danny?” Brian asked, startling me from my thoughts.

“Doesn't seem like he’s much better. He just turned down dinner.” 

Brian just shook his head. He draped an arm over my shoulders. “Well, I’m starving. Let’s go, Kiddo.”


	2. 2

Danny

Sleeping didn’t help me feel better. In fact, I woke up feeling worse than I had felt all day. My head was pounding. Nausea came over me in waves. 

“Sounds like food poisoning, bro,” Arin had said when he called earlier.

“Come take care of me, Big Cat.” I had no shame in admitting that the warmth of Arin’s body sounded like heaven at that very moment.

“I’d love nothing more than to do that, but you’re literally all the way across the country, Dan. Is Lexi not with you?” 

“I can’t let her see me like this,” I admitted. 

“Don’t be a fuckin’ hero dude. Let her take care of you.” When I didn’t respond he continued. “At least tell her how bad you feel. She’s probably chewing her nails down over you.” 

That had been hours ago. Lexi had asked about dinner soon afterward. I slipped in and out of sleep before finally giving up on getting any sort of rest. I picked up my phone and sent Lexi a text. 

“I feel worse than ass. I wish you were here.” 

Her reply was almost instant. “What can I do for you?” 

“Bring some ginger ale and pet me?” 

“You got it, babe.” 

I heard the door unlock, open, and gently close as Lexi crept into the room. She set what sounded like an aluminum can and a plastic bottle on the table by the bed. 

“They only had Sprite in the machine. And water.” Her voice was soft and had an immediate soothing effect. 

“‘kay.” 

She gently made her way onto the bed, careful not to jostle me. I felt her lips brush across my forehead. I found myself doing my best to put every bit of my body against her. We stayed there, silent, while she ran her hand over my hair. I felt myself relax enough to forget how shitty I felt. 

It hit me just after midnight. I jolted awake, gagging, my mouth a waterfall of saliva. I barely made it to the bathroom. My stomach lurched, I felt fire come up through my chest, and into my mouth. Sludge filled my mouth. The texture made me gag again. I fought to catch my breath before another round. My fingers ached from the death grip I had around the bowl of the toilet. 

“Danny?”

“Go back to bed,” I managed to say before I felt the burning in my chest again and my stomach spasmed. I could feel the muscles of my back tense as my stomach pushed more sludge-liquid out of me. 

God, it hurt so badly.

 

Lexi

I stood outside the doorway, unsure of my next move. The sound of Danny gagging and vomiting made my heart sink and race all at the same time. When the room ahead of me was silent, save for the flush of the toilet, I grabbed the bottle of water from earlier and braced myself. 

“I’m coming in,” I said, hoping I sounded confident. 

My heart broke upon seeing Danny so miserable. His back was against the wall, his left elbow was propped up on the edge of the bathtub so he could rest his head in his hand. One leg was bent in front of him, the other stretched out to the side. It wasn’t until this moment I realized just how small hotel bathrooms were. 

Almost as if I had done this before, I grabbed a washcloth from the cabinet under the sink and ran it under some cool water. Kneeling next to Dan, I handed him the bottle and proceeded to dab his forehead, cheeks, and even around his mouth with the cloth. 

“Drink,” I said. When he started to argue, I sternly repeated the word. “It’ll make the next round easier. You know…science and shit.” 

He swished water around his mouth and spat it out before taking small sips. He leaned his head back. His hair was stuck to his face with a mix of sweat and water. His chest rose and fell as if he’d just finished a run, but gradually slowed. His Adam’s Apple bobbed with each swallow. 

“You don’t have to do this,” he whispered. 

“Shhh.” I brushed some hair from his face. “You’re breaking my ‘Keep the Crazy At Bay’ concentration.” 

A small laugh escaped his lips, followed by a deep, wet cough. He pushed himself forward. He opened his mouth and a flood of foul smelling liquid rushed out. 

I pulled his mass of curls away from his face and awkwardly rubbed his back. His muscles contracted under my hand as his body worked to expel everything he’d ingested. As someone with emetophobia, it was difficult for me to offer comfort. Whenever I felt sick, the last thing I wanted was for someone to touch me. In fact, the last time I threw up, I had been alone and grateful. Danny was needy when he didn’t feel well, though, so I tried my best to do what I hoped he’d take comfort in. 

Another flush. He pulled the lid down and put his cheek against it. 

“How do these things always stay cold?” he asked. 

Wiping his face and mouth again, I just chuckled. I felt his forehead. “No fever,” I noted. “Arin said a fever meant it was more than food poisoning.”

“He called you?” 

“Mhm. Said it sounded like you had food poisoning and didn’t want to tell me how sick you really were.” 

“M’sorry.” He sighed. “You’re amazing.” 

“I know. As silly as it sounds to ask, how are you feeling?” 

“Less like I’m going to hurl right this minute. But also like I will again soon.” He looked up at me. 

“C’mere,” I said, stretching my legs out in front of me. 

“Lexi, you can go back to bed.” 

I shook my head. “I know you won’t want to be far from here. You may as well be comfortable.” He leaned toward me and rested his head on my lap. I settled in for a long night.


	3. 3

Danny

Lexi somehow slept through another sick spell. My everything ached from all of the vomiting. It had been so long since I’d thrown up, let alone ten thousand times in the span of two hours. The water did help, as Lexi said it would. It’s much easier to projectile water than chunky soup. 

But it still sucked. A lot. 

I crossed my arms across the toilet and rested my forehead on them. I didn’t see the point in closing the damn thing up again. This would never end. I was doomed to sit in front of this hotel porcelain bowl and puke until I died. The thought of moving away from it sent panic through my veins. This was bad. I vowed to never eat sushi again. 

At least for a couple of months. 

And only from our favorite place in L.A.. 

Nothing was left inside of me. How I could even produce saliva to spit every few minutes, I had no idea. I was literally just dry heaving off and on until sunrise. 

“Morning.” Lexi’s morning voice was a soft tinkling of bells. I felt light touches on my back. Her fingers were cool. I could feel them through my shirt.

Had I fallen asleep? 

Before raising my head I mentally assessed my physical state. I didn’t feel nauseated for the first time in over twenty four hours. My mouth was dry. 

Holy shit. My mouth was dry. 

“Water,” I rasped. My throat still burned. Lexi pressed a cup to my lips. Cool water slid over my tongue. It was heaven. I swallowed a little at a time, afraid to make the nightmare start again. When my stomach stayed quiet, I took the cup from Lexi and drank down the rest of it. 

“You need to stretch, Danny. Let me help you up.” Lexi was in Mommy Mode. 

I took the hand she offered. “Jesus FUCK!” It was all I could not to shout. 

Lexi stopped all movement and stared up at me, her eyes huge. 

“Muscles are stiff and store. Sorry.” My abdomen felt like every muscle fiber had been rubbed with the coarsest sand paper. My back and legs screamed. 

“Arms up,” Lexi said. She pulled my shirt over my head and arms. “Lean forward. If it makes you feel sick, stop.” 

Following her commands, I leaned forward, then slowly bent at the waist. I let my arms hang parallel to my legs. I felt the stretch through my hamstrings and back. 

“Roll up.” Lexi’s voice was breathy, but firm. “Arms back up. Now lean back just a little. Your abs have to be screaming.” 

They were, but the stretch felt so good. So did Lexi’s fingers on my waistband. She was unbuttoning my pants. I moaned and was immediately embarrassed. 

Lexi just shook her head and continued with featherlight touches. She undid my zipper and let my jeans hit the floor. My boxers were pulled down too. 

“Calm down, Sexbang. I’m getting you ready to shower.” 

I stuck out my bottom lip. I did not feel like standing up to shower at all. 

“Leigh Daniel, even if you wind up expelling your guts into some random receptacle later, you are smelly now. Even if you just let the water run over you and barely soap up, it’ll make you feel a little better. Then you’ll try to brush your teeth because…dude.” 

“HA! Fine, Mom.” 

“Damn straight. Now get in. I’ll be nearby if you need me.”


	4. 4

Lexi

While Danny showered, I busied myself. I still felt panic waiting just under my skin. I handled being close to a vomiting person without running away screaming. I had fought through all of the fear by telling myself that I couldn’t catch food poisoning. But I still felt unnerved. 

So, I straightened the bed covers up and proceeded to go through Danny’s bag for his pajamas. It didn’t take long to find the soft unicorn print pants. I laid them out along with a shirt, though I had a feeling he wouldn’t wear it, and fuzzy slippers. In my own bag I found my stash of peppermint tea. I ran down the hall to the area where breakfast was served to find hot water. I wanted the tea to be steeped by the time he was out of the shower. 

My timing was not as perfect as I would have liked. Danny was sitting on the side of the bed when I came back into the room. He had put on his pants and fuzzy slippers and was sipping the Sprite I had left on the night table. His hair was tied back in a loose tail. It may have just been from the hot shower, but it seemed his color was returning. 

“Hey,” he said softly. 

“Hey back.” 

I sat the cup of tea on the night table then sat down. Danny’s fingers were interlaced with mine within seconds. He lifted my hand to his lips. 

“I love you,” he said against my skin. 

“I love you, too.” 

“Thank you, Lexi.” His eyes, bloodshot as they were, were full of love. “You did a big thing. I never would have asked you to do that. Hell, I asked Arin to come out here because I didn’t want to put you through anything. You are a wonderful human being, my love.” 

I blushed. “You’re the only one who gets that treatment. And I’d do it again if i had to. But don’t make me.” I kissed his cheek. “How are you feeling?” 

“So sore. So tired. That’s all I feel right now.” 

“Alright, mister. You need to rest. Now that you’ve gone a few hours without being all gross, I think it’s safe for you to relax and sleep.” 

“Only if you’re my big spoon.” He grinned at me.


	5. Chapter Five

Danny

“He’s been asleep for an hour, give or take,” Lexi whispered. “Not really, no. Mhm. Aww, you didn’t have to do that. I love you, too.” 

“Hi, Arin,” I murmured. 

“He says ‘hi, back,’” she said before turning her attention back to Arin. “Yes, sir.” 

I rubbed my eyes with the heels of my hands. I felt like absolute shit. My skin felt clammy and I just felt sticky in general. 

“You alright?” Lexi asked, concerned.

I shook my head. My mouth was filling with saliva rapidly. 

“Hang tight. I’ll be right back.” She darted to the bathroom and was back with the trash can within seconds. 

Slowly, I pushed myself up to sitting. My body was in conflict with itself trying to expel everything it deemed bad but also keeping it locked in. I wanted nothing more than to puke and get it over with. Though every heave was dry, my breaths came in shallow pants. 

“Sip some water,” Lexi instructed. “Slow deep breaths. Just let it come.”

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. 

On the third inhalation the burning pain in my chest returned; my stomach lurched. My exhalation was accompanied by the water I had just swallowed. My stomach clenched again. As tears streamed down my face I spat out another mouthful of sour bile. And another. In reality mere minutes passed; in my mind a decade had gone by. 

Once it was safe to lie back down, Lexi brushed my hair away from my face. Her cool fingers felt so good on my forehead, but they didn’t linger. I got a vague sense she was rushing as she dabbed a cool cloth on my face. Sleep took me over before I could speak. 

 

Lexi

Danny fell asleep easily when the vomiting stopped.

_You can’t catch this. You can’t catch this._ I repeated the phrase over and over in my mind. It had been working all night until this moment. 

I somehow managed to tie up the garbage bag Danny had damn near filled up. I double bagged it and thanked everything sacred there was a housekeeping cart in the hallway. I dashed down to it, tossed the bag, and rushed back to the room. Everything in me wanted to leave the room, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave Danny alone. 

_It’s not contagious. But you will get sick. You’ll start puking and it will never end. You can’t catch food poisoning._

I placed the trash can next to the bed. Danny’s skin was pale; his hair was a frizzy mess. I reached out to feel his forehead when a pained moan came from his throat and brought every bit of panic back to the forefront of my mind. 

_Danny’s going to throw up on you. The others might have eaten at the same place. They’ll all be sick. Then you will. YOU CAN’T FUCKING CATCH FOOD POISONING!_

I locked myself in the bathroom, turned the shower on as hot as I could stand it, undressed, and sat in the tub. The hot water pounded on the back of my neck and slid down my back. I forced myself to breathe evenly. Four second inhales, four second exhales. The sound of Danny retching made its way through the bathroom. 

_Am I nauseous? What if I get bad food later? GODDAMMIT, LEXI! GET IT TOGETHER!_

“Lexi? Lexi? Hello? Are you in here?” 

If I didn’t respond, no one would know I was having a panic attack, right? A girl could only hope. 

“Lexi, it’s Arin. Answer me or I’m coming in!” 

“I’ll be out in a few, Boss.” 

“Good. I didn’t want to break the door.” 

Carefully, I pulled myself out of the tub. I toweled off and threw my clothes back on before giving the action a second thought. I took a deep breath in before opening the door. 

“You think you’re finished, buddy?” Arin’s voice was soft. “It’s okay. This shit sucks. I know it hurts.” 

Danny whimpered. 

My heart broke. 

So did my mind.


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny's food poisoning causes Lexi to face her emetophobia...

Lexi 

“The hell are you doing out here?” Arin’s tone was demanding.

“Jesus!” I screeched. 

“You shouldn’t be outside in a strange city so late. Especially with it being so chilly out.” He squatted next to me. “You okay?” 

“Far from it,” I admitted. 

“Are you sick, too?” Arin reached out to touch my forehead. 

“Don’t.” I stated firmly. “Just. Don’t.” My skin felt like it was vibrating.

“Lex…” When I didn’t respond, he sat down beside me. 

A sob escaped my throat. Tears were streaming down my face. I didn’t even try to fight it anymore. 

“He’s the one who’s sick and I’m acting like a fucking victim,” I said through tears. “It’s so stupid! I can’t turn it off.” More sobs wracked my body. 

“Oh, Babygirl. Don’t beat yourself up.” 

“I got so angry when he was throwing up earlier. I wanted to yell at him to stop doing this to me. To stop doing it all together. He can’t fucking help it and I’m angry about it, Arin! I’ve put on this brave face and held it together. I’ve touched him right after the fact. I’ve cleaned him up. Cleaned up after him. I thought I was okay. Then I just…I just couldn’t do it anymore. I’ve tried for hours to tell myself it’s not contagious, but Irrational Lexi isn’t listening. I had to get out.” 

Arin tilted my face toward him. His dark eyes shone in the light of the street lamps. He was smiling. He held my gaze for a long moment before speaking. 

“You did it, though. It’s been six hours since you told me had gotten sick. Six hours you stayed in the same room with him. Six hours that you’ve done what instinct told you to do instead of overthinking everything and freaking out.” He kissed my forehead. “That’s a fucking record. It’s okay to break down after an ordeal.” There was emphasis on the word “after.” 

Before I could protest, Arin wrapped his long arms around me. The pressure of his embrace brought the intensity of my anxiety down from a ten to a five within seconds. 

“I’m so proud of you, Babygirl.” He kissed the top of my head. “So fucking proud. Let’s get you inside.” 

“I can’t…” 

“How ‘bout this? I give you my room key and you chill out in a quiet space. I’ll stay with our boy. Sound good?” 

“I love you so much.” 

“I know.”


	7. 7

Danny

 

“Morning, Mister Sleepy.” Arin’s breath was warm against my ear. “Do you need the trash can?” 

“M’okay.” I rubbed my hands over my face before opening my eyes. “When did you get here?” 

“Couple hours ago. You don’t remember?”

I shook my head. Everything was fuzzy. 

Arin’s fingers brushed against my forehead. “Still no fever. How are you feeling?” 

How was I feeling? I took a moment to self-assess. 

“Like ass,” I finally answered. “But less so than before.” 

Arin helped me sit up. He even piled pillows behind me so I wouldn’t have to hold my pounding head up. Before I could ask, Arin produced water and Tylenol. I wasn’t sure I could keep it down, but it was worth a shot. I leaned back into the pillows, willing myself to feel better. 

Arin settled back into the bed beside me and wove his fingers between my own. I gave them a little squeeze. We sat in silence for a while. Arin had taken care of me enough over the years to understand that the slightest sound could over stimulate me while sick. With my head aching and my stomach still uneasy, I would have a hard time staying comfortable with music or tv playing. 

I drifted in and out of sleep for the next few hours. I woke up with my head on Arin’s shoulder. He was playing “Super Mario Run” and somehow managing to keep his rage to a minimum. I watched him, quietly, for a few minutes so as not to disrupt his progress. 

“Hooray, Big Cat!” I weakly cheered when he completed a level. 

“Oh, hey. Welcome back.”

“Mmm. Thanks. Can I get some water? Pretty sure I ate a desert in my sleep.” 

“Of course, dude! Anything else?” 

“Just something cold and wet.” The thought of much else made my stomach feel rebellious. I was not ready to tempt fate. Arin handed me a small bottle of water. It felt amazing going down my throat. I probably drank more at once than I should have. “Where’s Lexi?” I asked when I felt satisfied. 

“She’s staying in my room until you feel better.”

Guilt washed over me bringing with it a wave of nausea so strong I knew I had only seconds to react. 

The cold tile of the bathroom floor was almost uncomfortable, but I knew I’d want to feel it later. As soon as I was down on my knees, my stomach pushed the not-so-cold-anymore water up in a rush. What sounded like white noise through a large amp turned up to eleven blared between my ears. My stomach cramped over and over bring up more watery vomit. God, it hurt so much. 

I wanted to feel better. 

I wanted Lexi’s touch. And her soothing voice. 

A retch so hard it made my throat burn pulled me back over the toilet. I was absolutely empty. My body doesn’t listen to itself very well. 

Arin cracked open the bathroom door. The bottle of water from earlier rolled toward me and stopped when it hit my leg. “Just yell if you need anything,” Arin said before closing the door. 

No one will ever convince me that bathrooms aren’t made for violent puke sessions that make the body burn from the inside out. I flushed, closed the toilet lid down, and rested my cheek on it. I whimpered. Self pity was not favorite feeling, but I couldn’t feel anything else. I didn’t want to be sick anymore. I didn’t want my girlfriend to be fighting panic attacks because of me. I wanted to be in my bed with her head on my chest, watching “The Last Unicorn” or something. 

After an eternity, I made my way back to the bed. I curled into Arin’s side, burying my face into his arm. 

“I broke her,” I whispered. “She was doing so well. Now she’s back at square one.” 

“No, man. She’s not broken. A little shaken, but not broken.” Arin sounded confident in his words. He continued. “She pushed herself, that’s a fact. But it wasn’t a bad thing. She knows she made progress, even though she had a breakdown. None of this is your fault. I mean…gas station sushi may have been, but other than that, neither of you asked for this. Now, stop worrying that messy head of yours and rest.”


	8. 8

Lexi  
I had a text from Danny when I woke up. 

“I’m too tired to write a whole thing, but, Lexi…thank you. You faced everything you are terrified of for me. I will spend the rest of my life trying to repay you. I love you. Goodnight.” 

A tear fell down my cheek. I had been alone in Arin’s room for at least 18 hours. 

“Good morning, you. How are you feeling?” 

An almost instant response. 

“I could eat an entire package of Oreos right now and feel no guilt whatsoever.” 

I literally laughed out loud. 

 

****  
The room was dark when I opened the door. Faint chatter came from the direction of the TV.

“That you, Lexi?” Danny whispered. His voice came from the love seat beside the bed. 

“Mhm. I brought Oreos.” 

“God, I love you. C’mere.” He sounded much better than he had before. My heart skipped a beat with excitement for him. 

I hesitated to sit right beside him but pushed the concern aside. I studied my boyfriend. His color had returned. His freshly washed hair was tied back in a tail. Stubble darkened his cheeks. Before I realized what I was doing, I touched his face. He closed his eyes and leaned into my hand. 

“I’m sorry, Lexi. I-“ 

“Stop,” I interrupted. “You’re fine. I’m fine. It’s okay. Now, do you want to eat these damn cookies, or not?”


End file.
